Power management for computing platforms is a subject of great concern. It is a major focus in the design and operation of computing platforms, systems and sub-systems. Ideally, devices and components should not operate at a higher level of activity than absolutely required. However, system and devices may not, for example, be fully aware of the present and/or future operational states of the components to which they are connected. In some aspects, software embodied techniques have been proposed to manage the power states of some computing platforms. A disadvantage in some such systems is that the software must be executing in order to manage the power. Thus, the running of the software may itself prevent the system from entering into a lower idle power state.